Grounded in Faith, Formed in Community
On any given Wednesday night in downtown Casper, Wyo., a group of once strangers gathers for a shared meal in a small retail shopping center. A store-front space on the upper level has been transformed into a living room-like venue. Through the large panes of glass windows you can glimpse comfortable couches, local art hanging…
Just try to hide when you visit “Mother Emanuel” African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, S.C. They welcome you from the pulpit and ask you to stand. They hand you a microphone so you can give your name and your hometown. Then everyone sings Emanuel’s own welcome song, “Mother Emanuel Welcomes You.” As the song puts it,…
In the church planting program we talk about theory. The Church Planting Initiative cohort at Pittsburgh Seminary was recently discussing liturgy and the fact that it forms us. We were naming the ways people respond unexpectedly and how people handle being in community with those who are different from them. We talked a lot about the work…